Today we’re going to walk from Green Park to the BT Tower at sunset. I’d plot out the route of my walk for you on Google maps, but I have no idea what my route actually was. As is my custom, I was trying to get lost. What I can tell you is that this walk will take us through a little corner of Mayfair, and then through neighborhoods called Soho and Fitzrovia. Having only been here for 1.5 months, I still feel quite under-qualified to be making any sort of statements about London as a whole, but these areas really feel like the “heart of the city” to me.
Founded all the way back in 1636, Providence is one of the oldest cities in America. It was founded by puritan exiles from the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and would ultimately become one of America’s original 13 colonies. So, Providence is one of the O.G.s.
What is Providence like today? Well, it turns out that being the “most populous city” in the smallest state in the US doesn’t mean much in terms of population. Boston, which is less than 2 hours away, absolutely dwarfs Providence, whose population is even less than that of Worcester (“wus-tah”), MA. So, Providence is a relatively small place. However, it still manages to play an active role as a regional hub, boasting 8 major universities, including Brown, RISD, and Johnson & Wales University.
I actually came to love Los Angeles during my last visit (right before COVID hit)—it is a very distinct place. And as Venice beach unfolded before me like some sort of surreal virtual reality, I realized that this might be the most “LA” place I’d yet seen. It is the stereotype of what this place is. It was Saturday night and everybody was out having fun. I hurriedly crossed the boardwalk and made a B-line for the beach so I could catch the sunset. It did not disappoint. I’ll postpone additional narrative in favor of just showing you the pictures I took.
Making the jump from plain ol’ Richmond/Vancouver suburbs to historic Steveston happens unceremoniously. One minute you’re speeding through cozy residential neighborhoods, the next you’re slowing down as you drive along the docks. Having never been this far north on the west coast, my only reference points for what this place feels like were all about 2,000 miles eastward. Maine. Massachusetts. Nova Scotia. That’s what Steveston feels like.
Boulder, Colorado. With a population of just 97,385, it’s definitely one of America’s most famous small towns. Sitting at an elevation of 5,430 feet above sea level, its reputation as a beautiful mountain town has made it a household name. But, to the un-indoctrinated among us, it may come as a surprise to learn that it’s actually not in the mountains per se… it’s a smaller moon in the orbital of the Denver metro area, and as such, it is merely mountain-adjacent. It’s pressed right up against the mountains, but it’s not actually in them. This was a surprise to me at least. The drive time from Denver to Boulder is like 40 minutes, and it’s not exactly an undeveloped stretch.
Today we’re going to start with a clerical note that was once confusing to me. The instant you start talking about Boston neighborhoods, you will hear the terms “South Boston,” “South End,” and “Southie” come up fairly often. When I first moved to Boston back in the day, this was confusing to me. I knew there was more than one neighborhood in the mix, but all of these terms sounded the same to me. Well let me break this down for you: South Boston and South End are different neighborhoods. And “Southie” is the common nickname for South Boston. Historically, these were very different places, and today we’re going to check out both of them…
Before I left for this trip, I asked my friend Melanie (hey girl!) if she had any dark-horse recommendations for off-the-beaten path things that I should do in Mexico City. She told me that when she visited, she had taken a lot of her cues from an Instagram account called @thecuriousmexican. The girl who runs this apparently speaks very highly of a large marketplace called Mercado Jamaica (Jamaica Market). It was supposed to be very authentic, and very off-the-beaten path, so when she (Melanie) was in Mexico City, she decided to try visiting it. Apparently when she told the cab driver where she was trying to go, the driver cautioned her that this was a very dangerous area, but she went anyway. Clearly she lived to tell the tale, so I’m following in her footsteps today.
We received no such words of caution when we stepped into our Uber, but we were also two large men. A single white female would need to be careful pretty much anywhere, whereas being male, 6-4, and ~230lb pretty much ends all of my fights before they even start. However, I will admit to a small amount of anxiety about the neighborhood. It was definitely sketchy, but once I threw myself into it, I felt totally fine. All of the interactions I had with people were extremely positive.
In Mexico City, I knew that neighborhood we stayed in was going to be key. I had lots of recommendations given to me, and the areas that separated themselves as the clear choices were Condesa and Roma. Prior to my arrival, although the two areas are right next to each other, I understood these neighborhoods to be more distinct from one another than they turned out to be. Once I actually got there, I found that they were essentially just extensions of each other, with only minor differences. So I’m just going to treat it as one body. And oh my gosh you guys—I LOVE THIS AREA.
Stepping out the door of our Airbnb, just a couple blocks away from Forsyth Park, the air was thick with humidity. It was so humid that my camera lens was quickly covered in a dense fog that took a few blocks to wear off. Roots run deep here. Everybody knows everybody. Sure there are lots of visitors that pass through, but in every living room of every house on every quiet Savannah street, there is a thriving community of families living here that are constantly going to school together, growing up together, marrying into one another, and so on.
First off, what I’m defining as “Richmond” here is actually made up of 4 smaller districts: Inner, Central, and Outer Richmond… and a little area to the north called Lake Street. This neighborhood (or group of neighborhoods) is essentially a big grid system, which, despite occupying an extremely urban area of San Francisco, is surrounded on almost all sides by nature.
